test garden question...

[Anonymous]

I put the test garden in today and had an interesting occurance. I buried a silver quarter on its side at 10 inches. At 30 auto sensitivety in iron mask at -6 all I got was a null. When I opened up iron mask to a -16 the coin sings out like crazy. I don't have any other trash in the area and wonder why this would happen?

 

[Anonymous]

Sounds like you got alot of iron in your soil. In the area I hunt -12 is all I need to see through the iron. I believe as the coins in your garden create a halo, you will pick it up at -10 iron mask.

 

[Anonymous]

The fine iron sand (black sand to gold people) does affect the target resolution. Foiled again Jim and myself believe Iron with "Mask" the presents of coins. The experienced guys can pick out the coin sounds from the Iron but I have had to "open up" my iron mask setting to -10 and -12 to hear the coins that are in Iron
Try using FERROUS sounds and see if it helps with Iron. I was tought this by Jim and its worked well for me. Just remember the tones are responding to FERROUS content and not CONDUCTIVITY. the farther right...the higher the tone. I had to open my mask up to -14 today and it delivered two wheat pennies but the iron was really moaning in the background.
HH STEVE

 

[Anonymous]

Is it better to run in manual sensitivity even when my threshold goes silent and remains silent? When I hunt in auto sensitivity at 25-30 I seem to be able to keep my threshold. When I switch to manual sensitivity my threshold goes away. Do you think I am losing anything by switching to manual?

 

[Anonymous]

No, probably not. Golddigger uses semi-auto all the time....the botton line? some guys want it rock stable some don't...
find a way your comfortable with and stick with it.....too many changes cause you to stay unbalanced(always learning new stuff). You should give yourself time for the learning curve to "flatten out" some. I was messing with my machine more than learning it....I finally settled down and just "USED" it. Don't get impatient to find all the "DEEP" stuff. New stuff is there and a little easier to find(learn with). The Factory setting will find stuff just fine and you will learn the tones that way(the most important part of the Explorer).
Increasing the seneitivity to the point of instability normally confuses people(it did me at first), but I will admit if you can stand a little falsing and instability you will get a "little" more depth. The problem is the depth might not do you any good cause the other "distractions" can easily cause you to over-look a good target
My settings are(i'm sorta newbie)
Semi-auto 30 (man 25 or so if I can stand it)
vol 10
Gain 7~8 (depends if you want deep to sound faint...some guys like the deepies faint to distinguish them...some don't want to miss anything)
Limits 10
Variability 10
Advanced:
Deep recover----
Fast recover (keep deep on and add fast in trash)
Smart screen with IRON Mask on(set to -8~-10)
FERROUS sounds
If your in high iron increase IRON MASK to -12 or so to hear the iron....lots of noise but the coins will "shine" through if your ear is trained.
remember this:
Tones are the primary indicator
Screen helps but can mislead
Depth Guage is more or less a cruel joke(doesn't work too well...calibrated for quarters so dimes look deeper and Half dollars look shallower)
If your thresh keeps going away you are in high iron or have heavy Discrimination.... I think its better to let your brain discriminate the tones instead of letting the machine blank it out....the chance is that it will blank a coin in the process
Ask GOLDDIGGER about his coin with an IRON NAIL stuck to it. He would never heard that without IRON MASK...Discrimination would have nulled....causing him to miss the coin
I'm still new so this is all subject to disection by my peers...but its what I've learned and been taught.
I will tell you this....My first silver a MERC 1937 was on the surface about a 1/4 inch under the soil. There was no mistake when the coil went over it. All my other silver, about five coins or so, Have been 4" or less. Deep silver is something you work towards with experience that can't be rushed. The more you hunt...The better you will get.
The Best advice...????? hunt with a veteran EXPLORER....that will teach you more than any thing.
Foiled again Jim in NC taught me a bunch and it was worth it....as well as making a new friend.
HH STEVE

 

[Anonymous]

Went out again today (my third time with an Explorer). I think I will follow your advise and keep it simple. I was so busy trying to figure out all those faint signals (they are so faint, are they false, can't seem to get a constant sound, maybe nothing's really there?) when this 1916 Barber dime screamed out at 5 inches. There was certainly no mistaking it.
Some guys I hunted with yesterday don't really use the custom settings (learn, reject, etc). They prefer to listen and hunt by sound. I have read that a lot on this forum. I wonder how many Explorer users use the custom features and how many just learn to discriminate by listening to more sounds? Seems like a lot on this forum hunt by sound and leave the discrimination pretty open. Thanks all for your advise. Tim

 

[Anonymous]

I haven't found a barber yet....figure they're here in Raleigh. Just got to stumble on one.
Just about all the guys use "EAR/BRAIN Discrim". I have to agree that if you train yourself to here the tones, a target won't be nulled because its close proximity to trash.
Remember though the tones and screen are affected by trash being close to targets. The screen is really affected cause it averages its results. the tones sort of run together but you can here the coin if its there.
WHEN IN DOUBT !!!!DIG!!!! if you can pinpoint the target, dig hell outa it. At the very least its a learning experience to see what it is.
I play a game with myself each time I start a hunt. The first several targets (regardless of them being good or bad) I try real hard to guess what they are (pulltab,screw cap,coin...whatever)then I did them and see if I'm right. I am getting better, but the big beer screw caps keep fooling me bad. They sound like a coin and look on the screen like a coin, They are buggers to figure out...and seeing as I'm in redneck country...there are a hell of a lot of them around. It's really rediculous the amount of those things around here.
On the main post (FBS) some guys tonite discuss the sound options (normal,audio-1,-2,-3)I've messed with them some but they are !!!WOW!!! confusing. I use normal but am gonna use audio-1 some at the state fair grounds to see if it will help in trash.
The learn and edit fuctions are only good if you use discrim alot...you can set up a custom screen with Iron Mask at -10 then learn in some junk with a medium cursor...but remember the screw caps??? you learn them in and they will almost certainly cover un new clad quarters. Pulltabs will cover gold rings....and sometimes nickles....it all depends on what ya want to do. I for one dig a lot ...I chose that at the outset, knowing it was to learn the machine.
I also must be honest and say I can't stand the thought of passing a possible target. That means a lot of trash...but guys like Mike and Digger find the GOLD. I've never asked but they probably dig a lot of trash ...or did in the beginning....might just ask them!!!! see what the response is
Glad to have helped....I'm open to any advice myself so let me know what you do and you will be teaching me before long!!!!
HH STEVE